The present invention relates to aids for disabled and partially disabled persons, i.e., a motorized stand-up urinal.
My copending patent application Ser. No. 08/365,071 (the '071 application), filed Dec. 27 1994, which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses a portable stand-up urinal that includes a urine bottle support having a hollow rod and an extension rod disposed within the hollow rod. The extension rod is selectively movable in its direction of elongation relative to the hollow rod. A stop screw may be provided to lock the extension in position relative to the hollow rod. The extension makes provision for supporting the urine bottle.
Disabled or partially disabled persons, who have trouble standing without an aid and generally must grasp the aid with both hands if changing position while standing, may find it awkward to adjust the height and distance of the extension disclosed in the '071 application through manual manipulation. It would therefore be desirable to adjust the relative height and distance of the extension other than through manual manipulation, thereby freeing the hands of the disabled or partially disabled person from manually positioning the extension. It would be desirable to free such persons from the need to make bending movements to effect such adjustment.
In addition, such disabled or partially disabled persons may have difficulty transferring themselves between various aids or devices, such as a wheelchair, walker and a water closet. Often, there is a gap between the aid or device which the person is going to and the aid or device that the person is leaving. As a result, the person must reach across this gap to grasp the aid or device at the other side, thereby adversely affecting the leverage that the person has to pull or carry his/her weight across the gap.